The Delicate Leaf
by Sherble
Summary: The power she harbors is immense. Capable of holding down even the most threatening beasts in the world, Kanami must find a way to control her power. For herself, and for her village. To survive she will have to enlist the help of countless others. Her mission is taxing, and it will wear heavily on her for her life. But she will do it. For her... For them... For him.
1. Enter! Kanami Uchiha!

Konoha was a lovely place in the spring. Everywhere children ran about with their friends they've known since birth. Passers-by often had the chance of being struck in the ankles with a stray ball or bumped into by hordes of children attempting to break traffic in in the dirt roads to get across. However, that was spring for normal children.  
Children in training to be Shinobi was an entirely different story.

Academy hours were long and taxing, students either forced to sit through lectures on chakara systems or throw shuriken at logs in the heat. In the end for them, thoug, it was worth it. After years of training you would recieve your Shinobi forehead protector and be enlisted in the registry. You would be assigned a team and from then on it was your duty to protect your village. To help the helpless. To provide for your family and for those around you. Shinobi make up the entirety of a villages army and stand as their only real protection from invasion.  
Thats why they were treated with such respect.  
However, today was a great day for Academy students; for today was their final graduation test. The task was simple: Create a viable clone of yourself that can mimick regular human movement, speech and appearance. Your secondary task is to transform your appearance into someone to the point where you look identical.

The classrooms were abuzz with chatter. Nervous friends confiding in one another; confident and outgoing people challenging one another to help practice. Some found peace sitting quietly in the corner. However, a common theme for classroom 3B was a blonde outcast by the name of Naruto Uzumaki. Having continuously failed every test in cloning and transformation it was a surprise that the boy had even made it this far. As he sat at his desk people openly sneered at him, denied him the attention and fellowship he craved. He was alone in this classroom of children.  
Yet when the door opened and Iruka entered the chatter died down. They would not admit to an adult their unruly behavior. Even if they all felt that everyone despised the blonde boy as they did. Iruka clears his throat as students take their seats.  
"Everyone, your assessments will begin momentarily. I hope you are all prepared." He glances around the room, taking note of every nervous face and every empty stare. His eyes rest on Naruto for a fleeting moment, watching as the boy stares uncaringly at him with his head cradled in his hand. Light from the windows bounces off of the green goggles on his head and onto Iruka's flack jacket reminding him of the night before when Naruto had asked him if he could wear his forehead protector. 'Just for a moment' he'd said, hands clasped in front of him. Exhaling to clear away the memory, he turns back to the rest of the class. "There will be someone else joining you all today for your tests. She's been homeschooled until today so please, try not to give her a hard time." Turning to the door, he beckons the outline of the girl through the door inward.  
In walks someone new, an anomaly to the other students. In walks a possible threat to their social standing, a possible obstacle for their graduation.  
In walks Kanami.

Hair dark as shadow. Eyes that reflect the night sky. Skin with the likeness of paper. She was pleasing to look at. Thus, as people eyed her up and down, they noticed the dark circles under her eyes and her pressed lips. She stands uncaringly in the front of the room, only moving to bow to them all and murmur a greeting that only Iruka managed to hear. The similarities were uncanny. Slowly, eyes flicker to the boy sitting by the leftmost wall of the room. His head rests on his thumbs, his fingers linked together over his mouth revealing only his dark eyes that glimmer with a hidden passion. He shows no signs of shock; nor does he seem to care in the slightest. Though, if you looked closely enough you could spot the subtle furrow of his eyebrows. "Everyone, this is Kanami Uchiha. Please don't crowd her as you all tend to do." His words keep the students glued to their seats. He directs her to an open chair in the back by a window and as she quietly ascends the steps to that seat Kanami notes the way the people in the room look at her.

In the back, two girls eye her over with confusion in their eyes. She notes their pastel hair colors. To the right, a goggle-donning boy stares at her. No doubt they all were because of her heritage. She Sasuke to her left. His eyes flicker to hers for only a moment and he gives her the slightest of nods. She stares ahead of her as she reaches the top step. Sliding past a row of students, she takes the empty seat as Iruka exits the room.  
Taking a deep breath, she prepares herself for the bombardment.

 **(A/N: Y'all are probably so sick and tired of me rn. I know, I know, I'm horrible smh. Anyways. I'm sorry this chapter was short but I PROMISE there is way more where this came from. If you're wondering why I'm starting this over from the beginning its because I made changes to my OC (Kanami my sweet child) and I've changed her story so much that I don't want it to be inaccurate. Yes, she's still an Uchiha and I know its over-used and dumb but Ive put too much work into her to take it back now. Also, I hope to not insert her into EVERY ARC AND EVERY MISSION THERE COULD POSSIBLY BE IN THE SHOW LIKE I DID LAST TIME... God, was that a mistake. Anyways, please enjoy this new POV of Kanami growing as both a Shinobi and a young girl!)**


	2. A Simple Set of Tasks

Students practically leap over eachother to reach her. Questions litter the air around her.  
"Are you really an Uchiha? Or are you just trying to copy Sasuke so you can be cool!"  
"Why's a kid like you have to be homeschooled, huh?"  
"What's so special about you?"  
"Show us your eyes!" Sighing lowly Kanami rests her head on her hand and turns to the window, opting not to answer any questions. She was tired of them. A few students, having the audacity to chance her patience, snap in her face. "Hey! You hear us? Answer me!"  
She rolls her eyes. She was bored of this game of 20 questions. Watching as the trees sway in the breeze, she wishes she could go home and be with her uncle.  
Snorting, the studnets call her a fake, a nobody. They tell her that she lies and that she should stop using the Uchiha name to get attention. Nobody came to her rescue, nor did she try to save herself.  
 _What a bunch of ignorant fools_.  
The door opening causes the students to dart to their seats. Names are called one by one as students leave for their test. As the number of students dwindled, her eyes instead wandered to those around her.

She notices the goggled boy two rows ahead of her shiver slightly. He was anxious to get the test over with. As per usual, her cousin held the same bored expression she did. His mind was elsewhere, and she could tell by the glint in his eyes. A boy with a puppy leans back in his chair, eyes closed. He was clearing his mind for the test. A good strategy, she had to admit. She continues to study the other students, taking in their appearance and whatever mental state she could gather from that alone. Only when her name is called does she rise from her seat.

Making her way to the door, she is met by another teacher with blinding white hair leads her to a room with matted flooring. Within the room stands another student.  
As she enters the room, Iruka motions to the second student and asks him to transform into her. He manages to do so, with the transformation looking relatively accurate... though, Kanami couldn't help but notice that the color of her eyes was slightly off. They weren't that dark...  
The student, given a passing grade, is handed a white ninja headband and is shown out of the room. Kanami silently hoped she didn't receive a white ninja headband. As the other teacher returns, Iruka clicks a pen.

"Alright, Kanami. Show us what you can do." Without hesitation, Kanami's hands flash into the sequence of symbols she and practiced for nights on end. In a puff of smoke, a perfect clone appears beside her. It stands as a perfect replication of her, down to her stance. Iruka nods and Kanami cuts off her Chakara. The clone poofs away. With a nod, the white haired teacher exits the room again. Kanami taps her foot impatiently, eager to leave the Academy behind and take a nap on the couch at home with the dogs. Brought into the room is one of the students from her classroom. The boy with the puppy. He blinks, confused as to why two students are here. Pointing to the boy with his pen, he hands a clipboard to the other teacher as he sits down again. "Can you transform into him?"  
Fingers close to her center, Kanami feels her Chakara stream to her fingers, circling through her hands. She closes her eyes, the image of the boy burned into her mind. She pictures herself beside him, and then two of him, and in an instant she feels her body change. Her neck feels colder due to the lack of hair and the red face paint under her eyes makes her want to squint. She can feel the boys eyes on her, observing her transformation for accuracy. Iruka nods- her cue to drop the Jutsu.  
Already knowing her outcome, she steps up to the table to receive her headband. He hands her a dark blue one and she holds in a sigh of relief.  
 _Its not white..._

"Congrats, Kanami." Iruka smiles at her as she looks down at the metal plate, running her fingers over the leaf inscribed into its shiny surface and leaving fingerprints. "You're a Genin now".


	3. The State of Being Alone

Kanami was quick to leave the Academy grounds. All the while, she stared at the gleaming metal in her hands. The blue cloth adhered to it was soft, yet undeniably sturdy. She was a Genin now.  
Sighing as she reached her home, she wonders whos team she will be assigned to the next day.  
 _I hope I'm on Uncle Kashi's team..._ Shaking her head, she threw that notion out the window. There was an unwritten rule of teams that she knew well by now. Teams were a 4-person party. The unwritten rule? Nobody in that party, if it can be helped, should be related to one another. This could cause unwanted favoritism and the willingness to protect them over the rest of the team during dangerous missions. It seemed Kanami would not get her wish. With this in mind, she infers that she will not be on her cousins team either. This doesnt bother her as much, as her and Sasuke didnt talk all that often.

Ascending the steps, she pulls out the key from her pants pocket. It shimmers in the light of the afternoon sky. She had only just recently gotten this key from her Uncle. It was for when he left on missions; so that she wasnt stuck indoors all day.  
Inserting the key into the lock, she turns it until she hears a click and enters the house. It is quiet, as it usually is. She closes the door and pockets the key.  
"Im home!" She calls into the house. No response. It seemed she was home alone today. Hopefully, her Uncle hadnt taken the dogs with him. Sitting down on the couch, she lays down and waits for the soft pitter-patter of paws on the hardwood floor that she knew so well. They did not come.  
So they're all out today...  
Repressing a yawn, she rises from the couch and walks tiredly to the kitchen. Checking the fridge for anything nice, she finds a small container of food with a note on top. She grabs the note, first intending to read her Uncle's message to her. She had a feeling she already knew what it was.  
 **Kanami,**  
 **Got a last-minute call from the Hokage for a mission- I wont be home until later. I made dinner for you already. If you want anything else you can go to the market. I've left money on top of the fridge.**  
Sighing, Kanami rubs her eyes. Of course he would be called out on the day she became a real Ninja instead of a little Shinobi-in-training. She reads the rest of the note.  
 **I'm sorry I cant be home today. Im sure you did fantastic on your final exams. Thankfully, Iruka already knew about your efficiency in other areas of your training so you only had to go in for this one test. I'll see you when I get home.**  
 **-Kakashi**  
Another night alone, it seemed. Not even the dogs were here to comfort her.  
Grasping at the container, she struggles with the lid for a moment until she is finally able to pry it off. She peers into the container as she closes the refridgerator door. The smell of cold dumpling soup wafts through the air around her head. A soft smile rises to her face. At least he had made her favorite.

Dumping the contents of the container into a pot, she turns on the stove and waits for her dinner to heat up. While she waits, she observes her forehead protector again. It was her greatest accomplishment since surviving the massacre...  
As the smell of dumpling soup filled her home, she found herself growing more and more tired. Opting to quickly eat her dinner, she doesnt bother to get a bowl and instead eats from the pot itself. She throws the dish into the sink to be washed later and returns to her spot on the couch. Seconds after laying down, she succumbs to the sweet state of sleep. Darkness crowds her vision but images dance across her mind. Colors brilliant as when she was awake. Silhouettes as vivid as memories. Sleep could hold her close in its embrace.  
Yet in an instant, it could break her at the seams.


	4. His Little Insomniac

When Kakashi finally returned home, it was late in the night. He'd already let the dogs in and they quietly picked their way around the house to avoid waking up its second, much younger resident. Quietly closing the door behind him, he sets his weapon pouch on the small table next to the door. He pauses as his eyes become adjusted to the dark. It seems Kanami wasnt in her room, but on the couch. Nor was she asleep, but instead curled into herself. He recognizes the subtle shake in her shoulders.  
Sighing, he walks over to the couch. "The dream again?" He asks quietly. She nods into the couch cushions. Letting out a muffled sniff, she sits up slowly. Kakashi couldnt help but grow worried as he noticed the dark circles under her eyes becoming slowly darker. Wrinkles from lack of sleep made their way across her face in the darkness of the room. His little insomniac needed some help. She rubs her eyes as she turns to face him and crosses her legs.  
Her voice is hoarce and sleepy. "It was worse this time..." She mumbles. "This time we went to the hospital..." Kakashi frowns.  
When Kanami's mother had died, it wasnt by bleeding out on the cold wooden floor of her home in the Uchiha compound. Instead, she had survived long enough to be taken to the hospital. She had been bandaged, treated, and left for God to make his decision. Unfortunatly, she was too weak to carry on. The image flashes vividly into Kakashi's mind.

 _Pale hands stroke the head of a dark haired girl. Kanami._  
 _She had long since fallen asleep beside her ill mother who watched her with sad acceptance in her eyes. She knew she wouldn't make it._  
 _Beside Kakashi stood his wife; Kanami's aunt. Unbeknownst to him, she wouldn't stay with him much longer after that night. Dark eyes shifted to him. He could see the light in them dying. Her movements slowed and her breathing became ragged. The heart monitor beside the bed let out slower and slower beeps. Slowly, her mouth opens and she manages a single sentence._  
 _She says to them, just above a whisper "Protect her...". The heart monitor flat-lines._

Letting out a sigh that seemed to have been repressed for years, he holds up his arms.  
"C'mere..." He says quietly. Leaning forward, Kanami wraps her arms around him and buries her face in his flak jacket. It smelled like dogs.  
Warm hands rub her back as she sniffs. Nights like this happened a lot nowadays. But this time was slightly different. She didn't tell him; because she didn't know how to- but there had also been animals in this dream. A snake, a dead raven and a fox. She didn't know what she meant, but she wanted to see if they came back. Admittedly, no matter how morbid it seemed the animals each brought comfort to her during that dream... Even the dead raven...  
Even still she wished her nightmares would end. Some nights she woke up screaming, her body shaking so horridly Kakashi was scared he would have to take her to the hospital.  
The dogs, as if sensing her emotional distress, clamber their way onto the couch and crowd around her. One of them worms their way into her lap and stretches up to lick her face. She smiles, pulling away from her uncle and pulling the dog closer.

"Hi, Pakkun..." She says. Scratching behind his ears, she watches as he curls up on her lap.  
Kakashi leans on the arm of the chair. He knew she wasn't sleeping any time soon.  
"So. How did your exam go today?" He asks. Though, he already knew the answer.  
"I passed." She says with a small smile. "My headband is dark blue..." The small flush of pink that rose to her face made Kakashi smile slightly. She was proud of herself... Something he was sure she didn't feel often.  
"Well I don't know why I asked. You did have the best teacher in all of Konoha teaching you." Kanami snorts. "Yep. The best teacher and the best Uncle."


	5. A New Day

After around half an hour of talking, Kanami somehow managed to doze off again. She awoke early in the morning. As she sits up and tries in vain to wipe the tiredness from her face she finds herself surrounded by dogs and blankets. The smell of eggs and bacon wafts in through the kitchen. Stretching, she lets out a yawn and throws the blankets off of her. Bringing herself up from the couch she works her way around the dogs and into the kitchen. By the stove stood Kakashi with a plate of scrambled eggs and bacon. He smiles at her as he turns the stove off.  
"Morning sleepy!" Shaking her head, Kanami sighs.  
She mumbles "Ohayo...". Rubbing her eyes, she walks to her uncle and reaches for the plate of food only for him to lift it over her head.  
"Oh no no no. This isnt for you." He tells her as her face morphs into a drowzy pout. "You'll throw up today if you eat all of this! Its for me." With his other hand, he reaches behind him and pulls an apple from the fruit basket on the counter. Kanami glares at him.  
"Very funny, Uncle Kashi. Gimme the plate." Her mumbles turn to grumbles of dissatisfaction as she reaches up to grab the plate; but with no success.  
"No."  
"You want me to starve?"  
"I never said that."

Pushing the apple into her grasp, he walks over to the table and sits down to eat.  
"I'm serious, Kanami. Today is going to be rough for you. That is, if you get one of the few Sensei's that actually try to teach their students anything." He looks off to the side, the grip on his fork tightening with frustration. He would never say it out loud, but he hated lazy teachers. As she took a bite out of her apple, Kanami's eyes rest on the ring bound to Kakashi's left ring finger for eternity.  
"Uncle Kashi." With a hum, Kanami's uncle turns to her once more. His visible eye blinks, waiting for her to say something. But as she looked into the dark pool of his iris that shone in the light filtering through the windows, she could not bring herself to say anything. Behind that sheen was a cesspool of grief. She didn't want to stir the muck slowly settling into the subconscious of his mind. She shakes her head. "Never mind..."  
Leaving Kakashi confused she exits the room as she devours the apple in her grasp. Soon it was nothing more than a core. Hurrying up to her bathroom, she brushes her hair and teeth and takes extra care to make herself look slightly more presentable than normal.

She slides into her turtle neck top and a pair of long pants before throwing on her Shinobi standard sandals. She downs the stairs quickly, patting each of the dogs on the head as she jumps past them. At the door she snatches up the weapons pouch Kakashi had bought her long ago. She stops when she reaches for her headband. Seeing it folded up so nicely on the small table with the metal shining in the morning light... it looked so nice that way. She didn't want to disturb it.  
Kakashi's smooth entrance to the living room jolts her back to her senses. Leaning on the door frame to the kitchen, he crosses his arms and gives her what she can only assume is a smug smile. "What are you waiting for?" He asks her. "You're going to be late."  
Nodding, her hand darts down to the headband. She ties it lazilly around her neck. The metal plate swings gently onto her collarbone.  
"You're right. I should go..." Grabbing her key, she shoves it into her pocket as she opens the door.  
"Good luck!" He calls after her. "Tell me all about what happened when you get back!"

Nodding only to herself she lets the door shut behind her. She skips down her front steps, veering quickly onto the dirt road. At this point in the morning not many people were awake. The only people out and about were fellow Genin or Genins-in-training and a few elderly who liked to get a head start on their day. It was at this point in the morning that Kanami felt herself the most at peace. It was time away from the constant noise. Away from the slight nuances that made her day slowly get worse. Making her way quickly down the road, she arrived at the Academy early and sat quietly in the back with her head down. As students filled in throughout the next few minutes they all let her be, thinking that she was asleep; but she heard them whisper about her. Some people said she was a fraud, others told rumors in awe of events that had never happened. The most common topic was the massacre...  
"I heard her parents were co-conspirators..."  
"Supposedly, she only survived because she sacrificed her parents..."  
"How awful, what happened to her and her family..."  
"She's just trying to copy Sasuke..."

 _Quit scrutinizing me when you don't even know me._


	6. A Few Introductions

Once the classroom was full, Iruka came in and assigned everyone a team number. Kanami didnt really pay attention to anyone elses. All she knew was that she was on Team number 9.  
 _Team 9, huh? Unlucky..._ She lets out a low sigh she hopes nobody else hears. _Torture and Agony..._  
Slowly, team by team, students leave the classroom with their new Sensei's. The first among them to go was a blonde girl with her lazy friend and a fat boy eating chips. Kanami silently empathized with the lazier of the three who yawned and gave the girl a scrutinizing look as they exited the room. She would hate to be on that team...  
As their numbers dwindled, she wondered if her Sensei would even show up. If they did, what would they think of her? Would they call her a fake?  
No. That wont happen... And if it does I'll prove them wrong... I'll prove them all wrong.  
Sitting up, she rubs her eyes anf glances around the room. The only people left were all people she didnt know nor did she care to know, quite honestly. As lonely as she was, she came off too oppresive to other people and she liked to avoid any interactions with others. Her own Uncle has called her bossy before...

Suddenly a man enters the room. His faded blonde hair hangs ever so slightly over his eyes that are framed by circular glasses with tape in the middle to hold the frame together. His eyes, the color of autumn leaves, sparkle in the light.  
"Is everyone from Team 9 here?"  
Standing up, Kanami moves to the side and pushes in her chair. She is aware of two other students following her closely behind. She stops in front of the man and peers up at him. He was rather tall, she would admit; but she noticed how thin he was. She could barely see any muscle on him.  
"Ah, good. Come with me." He gestures for them to follow and turns to the door. Kanami spies a ponytail just before he turns into the hall. Her and her new team, who she has yet to fully observe, follow quickly. The man leads them out of the school and down the street to a hill in a clearing. All the while Kanami stares at the spiral pattern on the back of his Jonin flak jacket.

He turns around, taking a seat on a boulder that rose from the ground like a skyscraper. Around it lay a debris field of similar sized rocks or smaller. He gestures to them.  
"Take a seat."  
Jumping up, Kanami rests on a rock facing as directly at her new Sensei as possible. Her fellow team mates took two boulders spread well apart from each other. The man crosses his legs, resting his elbows on either knee and leaning onto them. Letting out a low hum that rumbled from his throat similar to a cats purr he casts his gaze around the group. His gaze is surprisingly unnerving and Kanami finds herself unintentionally straightening her posture.

After surveying all of them for what he determined was a viable amount of time, he straightens a bit. His serious face suddenly stretches into a smile.  
"Well, now that we're all here and settled how about we do a few introductions? I'll go first." He pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "My name is Yuto, Haruka."  
 _That's a girls name..._  
"I spend my free time tending my garden at home. My dreams for the future aren't something that I think about often but," He looks up to the sky as if in deep thought. "I think I would enjoy being able to retire after teaching you kids." Letting out a low breath, he looks back to the group. They all seemed rather unimpressed by his introduction. Kanami swears he can see his eye twitch. Clapping his hands, his smile from before returns; yet this time in a wider form. More like... a child smiling for a photo. "Alright, who's next?" Turning to the student to Kanami's left, everyone shifts to face him. "How about you?"

The student, a boy, blinks as if unprepared for the question. His skin is tan, surprisingly so for Konoha's weather pattern. If it could be compared to anything, Kanami would pick a golden brown breakfast sausage...  
Guess she was still hungry.  
"Oh! Well..." Crossing his legs, the boy rubs the back of his neck. In the process he disturbs small tresses of dark brown hair. His icy blue eyes find their way to his shoes and he frowns before building up enough courage to look Haruka in the eye again. "My name is Hiroto, Iwaizumi. I guess I like to go for a walk if I have spare time, probably through the woods behind my house or something. But I hate sitting still. It makes me antsy." The latter statement was proven to be true as Kanami noticed him flex his toes against his sandal before instead fiddling with the hem of his army-green cargo pants. "I guess my dream for the future would be... To be an ANBU." Haruka raises his eyebrows but says nothing. He turns next to the student to Kanami's right, forcing Iwaizumi and Kanami to turn their bodies to face them.

 _It annoys me that he didnt go in order... The number line doesn't go 3,1,2 does it?_ _No! It goes 1,2,3! So when you go backwards it should be 3,2,1!_  
Letting out a low huff, Kanami settles down and looks her second team mate over. This one was a girl, like her. This brought her a bit more at ease, as now she didn't have to worry about imminent male rivalry and constant bickering. Though, from what she could tell, this girl was... very girly. She what Kanami could only assume was a combat-altered kimono. The dress was cut short with breaks up the side of the leg to allow better mobility. Beneath it she could see dark shorts. The sleeves of the dress were gone, instead replaced with long gloves similar to the pair Kanami owned but had neglected to put on for the day.  
 _I knew I forgot something..._  
The girls hair brought no contrast to the kimono, as it was stark white. Yet her eyes show no signs of albinism. They were brown, not red. Resting in her hair was a pin ordained with a red flower to keep it from blocking her vision. The rest of her hair was tied back in a tight bun. Despite this appearance that appeared to throw the team off, however... Kanami did like the blue obi that held her kimono together.  
"My name is Shiori, Misaki. I like to paint pictures in my back yard, but I hate waiting for them to dry. My dream for the future is to master the techniques of the Shiori clan and become the best ninja in my family."  
And then they all looked at Kanami.  
"What about you?"


	7. Battle: Who will win?

Feeling these particular sets of eyes made Kanami want to shrink, and she couldnt place why; but the way their gazes searched her made her anxious.  
"My name is Uchiha, Kanami." She starts, clearing her throat a bit in a vain attempt to calm her anxiety. "I like to sit at home with the dogs but I hate taking them for walks because they always get away from me. My dream for the future?..." Her fingers tangle together and she looks away. She is suddenly unable to meet Haruka's eyes. "I want to be the best Shinobi I can be... And make my family proud..."  
The silence that had settled around them makes Kanami shiver. She could cut the tension with a knife.  
"Those are all very good goals." Looking up, Kanami's eyebrows raise as Haruka diffuses the tension in an instant. He was smiling, his gaze soft and warm. She almost found herself getting lost in the orange flecks of those autumn eyes. "Im surprised." She blinks. "I thought one of you was going to pull the superiority card."  
 _Whats that supposed to mean?..._  
Suddenly, Haruka claps his hands. His smile still graces his face, yet Kanami feels something... off... He was planning something. "Well, now that that's out of the way," He shifts his head a bit and his glasses glint devilishly in the sunlight. He was ominous. "lets get started shall we?"

Suddenly Kanami felt that she was being watched, and in a flash she leaps to her feet. Bracing her feet on the hot stone she flips backwards off of the rock. She hears Iwaizumi and Misaki let out yelps of surprise. Haruka does not move from his rock. Eyes narrowing against the blinding sun, Kanami sees the silhouette of Haruka on not only her rock, but on Iwaizumi and Mikasa's as well.  
 _Clones..._  
The clone on her rock turns to face her. His bored expression mimicks the original perfectly. His eyes glint dangerously.  
Crossing his arms, Haruka leans on his right leg and sticks the other leg forward. "Not bad, Kanami." Only paying half attention to the clone, she glances at Iwaizumi and Misaki. Both of them were held in dangerous positions with kunai to their throats. Their eyes are wide with fear and distress. "Tell me, isnt your Uncle Hatake, Kakashi?" Focusing her attention back to the clone, she nods. There was no way for her to help her team now. She had to focus on surviving. "Then," Clone-Haruka's arms drop to his sides. "Lets see just what he's taught you."

Jumping down, Kanami jumps back as Haruka lands where she once stood. Kunai are braced in both hands, one facing towards her and the other away. He had 360 defense if he could counter her attacks well enough. Jaw clenched, he darts forward. She jumps over his attack and flips over the next. Her hair just barely misses the blades.  
As she lands she quickly draws shuriken from her ninja pouch strapped to the small of her back. Flinging them, she noticed that her throw was sloppy; but it was enough to get him to move. They bounce off of the stone behind him, sharp pangs ringing out as the metal leaves scores in the rock. Her eyes flash upward to where the clone was falling from. Even from far below him, she can make out his hands flashing into symbols.  
 _Snake, Horse, Dog, Boar, Ram?... What combination is that?_  
Suddenly she gets it. She can feel his Chakra pooling in his right foot. Eyes widening, she takes a few rushed steps back as Clone-Haruka lands with his right foot first. Immediatly, the Earth breaks apart in front of her. She was in the direct line of fire.  
 _If I get hit by this I'll hit into all of the rocks flying into the air...  
_  
Leaping up, she uses the rocks to propel herself high into the air. Slipping on one, her stomach rises to her throat as she begins to fall. Quickly, she flips upright and instinctively goes through hand signs. Chakra pools inside of her and she can feel the heat forming in her belly. If she managed to pull this off...  
"Katon-" No. There wasn't enough Chakra. _Shit! Change it!_  
In an instant the Chakra rises and burns her throat. "Gokakyuu!" Rising, the Chakra pushes against her teeth and makes her cheeks swell. She forms her fingers into the shape needed to properly contain the fire and keep it on its course before she lets it loose. Spitting fire, the ball of flame speeds through the rocks below her and burns it. It aims straight for the clone.  
 _Please hit!_  
Unfortunately, no. That wasn't the case this time. Though he seemed stunned by the display, he managed to dodge into the nearby forest. Gritting her teeth as she nears the ground she whips out three kunai. Rolling into the landing, she straightens up and aims for his back. She ignores Iwaizumi as he is thrown down next to her. "You're not getting away!" Flinging the blades, they stick into a tree as the clone ducks around them. One manages to graze his sleeve. She was getting faster.  
 _Good... But theres still the other three to account for._

Turning to Iwaizumi, she reaches down to help him up.  
"Are you alright?" Nodding, he spits dirt out of his mouth and wipes off his face.  
"Ah. Im fine." He turns around to face the rocks again. The second clone jumps down to meet the two of them, but Iwaizumi's gaze is elsewhere. "We have to get Misaki."  
"I know, but we cant right now. We've got clones to deal with." Bracing her position, she prepares for attack. "Be ready."


	8. Iwaizumi's Talent

Iwaizmi mimicks Kanami, shifting his stance to brace for attack or prepare for defence. The clone steps forward, his pace slow. After a few steps, he runs to them. In a flash, Iwaizumi pulls something from his couch.  
"Kanami," He yells. "Boost me!" She shoots him a look.  
"What?"  
Teeth gritting together, he shoots her a look that sends a jolt down Kanami's spine.  
 _How scary..._  
"I said: boost me!" As the clone reaches them and swings out with a punch Iwaizumi leaps back to avoid it. Kanami ducks and rolls to the side as a kick is aimed her way and stops besides Iwa. She quickly interlaces her fingers, creating a step for her team mate to use and he jumps onto her hand. She winces at the forceful contact. Feeling Chakara push against her hand, she is pulled downward by the force and a foot connects with her face as Iwaizumi jumps over it. She curses but quickly scrambles away to avoid whatever attack either of them had in store.  
"This had better be good, Iwa-chan!" She yells up to him.  
A wave of annoyance radiates from Iwaizumi as he exteds his arm outward. Something metallic gleams in his hand. "Dont call me that!" With a flick of his wrist a Fuuma shuriken reveals itself. Having no spin to build momentum, he lobs it at the clone with as much force as possible. The metal turns into a blurr and there is a sickening squelch as it cuts into the clones stomach. It disappears into a plume of smoke.

Kanami blinks, impressed. A small pang of jealousy works its way into her heart, though, as she ponders how it was so easy for Iwa to take down the clone with one shuriken; yet her own battle ended in failure.  
"Not bad, you two!" Haruka yells. He hasnt moved from his spot on his rock and his legs are still crossed. "Really, you've surprised me!" Standing from his crouch, the last clone prepares to throw Misaki from her own rock. However, before he can he is suddenly stopped. A cloud of smoke envelopes Misaki and she leaps gracefully downward onto the ground. The clone does not follow. Kanami and Iwaizumi are dumbfounded. What exactly had she done?...  
"So thats the Shiori Clan technique..." Haruka mutters, his eyes narrowing. "Interesting." He pushes his glasses up again but does not move from his spot. Iwaizumi tenses as if preparing to jump to him but Misaki grabs him by the shirt.  
"Dont." She says. Her voice still as light and airy as it had been before the battle. "He doesnt want to fight us." She turns to the woods, her chocolate brown eyes landing on the kunai Kanami had thrown into the tree. The others follow her gaze. "He wants us to follow his clone."

Kanami frowns. "Who would be idiotic enough to-"  
Before she can finish her sentence, Iwaizumi runs off. Sighing, Misaki casts her a sorry look before hurrying after him.  
 _Load of fools..._  
Rushing after them, she catches up quickly. They zoom into the woods and immediatly find themselves shrouded in shade. Light that should be filtering in through the leaves is minimal if nothing at all. Feeling a bit refreshed, Kanami tries not to focus on how tired shes becomming or how sweaty she feels. Kakashi was right. Today had been a challenge since the very beginning.  
 _In hindsight I shouldn't have worn these pants in this weather..._  
Sure, it was only spring, but there were days in Konoha were the sun beat down so harshly that stores sold out of water in hours. Today was one of those days.

Spotting dark specks on the ground, she skids to a stop and Misaki grabs Iwaizumi's shirt again to keep him from running forward. Kanami hisses at the tiny metal objects on the forest floor. "Caltrops..." She mutters. They surrounded them on all sides save for the way they came. Slowly as she observes the scene for signs of scoremarks and footprints to track sheh becomes aware of a noise similar to that of a fuse. Eyes snapping upward she spots several exploding tags planted on the trees. They were about to explode.  
Before she can even utter a single curse she feels something wrap around her waist and tug. Squeezing her eyes shut, she prepares for the pain.  
But it does not come.

Snapping her eyes open, Kanami stares ahead of her as she hears the tags go off but finds herself yards away from where she was. Now she was in a tree, perched on a branch with Misaki and Iwaizumi.  
"How did we?..." She murmurs, looking to Misaki for an answer. All she gets as a response is a glance to Iwaizumi who stands with a cheeky grin and his hands on his hips. "Iwa-chan?"  
She notices the subtle eye twitch; but thankfully he does not act on his annoyance.  
"Im the fastest person in the village, I can guarantee." He tells them, nodding pridefully at his work. "If you need to get outta somewhere in a jiffy I'm your guy." Blinking, Kanami grins.  
She was developing a plan.


	9. The Team Together

**(A/N: So since I'm bad at writing and stuff this is mostly in Haruka's POV till the very end. Also sorry that this one was shorter. I had intended to make it more climactic but I didn't know how to piece it all together.)**

Haruka sat idly on his rock, pondering at how surprisingly skilled his team seemed to be. There was Misaki with her Clan technique she had likely been taught since she was very young. She was certainly something, with that getup and her stark white hair. He wondered if that was hereditary or if she had some sort of genetic mutation?

Then there was Iwaizumi. Sure, he was a bit out of the loop; but that speed... It was unlike anything Haruka had ever seen. The exploding tags his clone had set were mere seconds away from exploding and he still managed to get his team out unscathed. He wondered what kind of strain that put on the body... Perhaps they would work on that.

And finally, there was Kanami. She was a bit of an enigma, though her battle with is clone had impressed her. She had shown a wide variety of skills. Her ability to time attacks with others, her ability to time attacks by herself and her ability to execute were marvelous. Though she was doing so well, Haruka could sense the hesitation in her. She was uncomfortable; yet in more ways than one.  
It was clear to him that when she had used her Katon: Gokakyuu no Jutsu she had intended for a much more powerful jutsu to be performed instead. He could see it in the way the flames exploded from her mouth as if she were unprepared for the sudden change in Chakra manipulation. By doing this she is no doubt putting stress on her body... He could also see it in her introduction. How she straightened every time they glanced at her, how she couldn't make eye contact... He wonders what she was like before the massacre.

Suddenly he feels a wave of Chakara from the forest, one stronger than he's felt since this fight had started. He hears what he can only describe as white noise before water suddenly floods from the woods ahead of him. Eyes widening he leaps off of the rock onto a higher one and watches as his clone is smacked into a boulder. It coughs, shaking its head to clear away the dizziness.  
 _Who performed that Jutsu?... It was surprisingly strong..._  
From the woods darts Iwaizumi with a kunai in hand. Brandishing it bravely he engages the clone. Sparks fly and the sound of metal on metal fills the air as the clone blocks with one of his own kunai. Frowning, the original scans the scene.  
 _Where are Kanami and Misaki?... Have they gone and planned something?_  
From the shadows of the woods comes Kanami, zipping and weaving unnoticed throughout the battle before her. Suddenly, Iwaizumi backs down and Kanami pulls shuriken from her pouch. With his back to her, it was her prime time to strike. However, the clone senses her and whips around. He smirks as she throws the shuriken off target entirely.  
"Nice try." He growls, only to be shocked as they curve around aimed directly at him. Grinning, he shoots forward to avoid them and darts in for the attack. "Better luck next t-" He frowns as he notices Kanami's arms pull back harshly. Her eyes glimmer with determination and she bares her teeth at him. Only then is he aware of it. Between her teeth he can just barely make out a small wire.

Regretting his decision to move forward, he lets out a grunt as wire wraps quickly around him and constricts him entirely. Keeping him steady, Kanami braces her feet into the ground. Finally Misaki emerges. Extending her arm to the side, it lights up a brilliant blue. Haruka watches with interest.  
The blue of her hand was no doubt Chakara, and as she steps forward it forms a barrier around her hand. Calmly walking past Iwaizumi, she stops behind the clone and swipes her hand into its side. Except it goes through.  
The Chakara, acting like a blade, forces the Clone to disperse. Dropping the wire, Kanami puts her hands on her knees and sighs. Clearly, she was exhausted, unlike Misaki or Iwaizumi who only seemed slightly winded from the ordeal.  
 _Interesting..._

At the sound of clapping, Team 9 casts their gaze back to their Sensei who now stands on his rock once more. His kind smile has returns as his clap echos throughout the clearing. The sunlight filtering down gives him an almost heavanly aura.  
"Great job, you three."


	10. Ice Cold

Sitting the three students down on the soft grass, Haruka produced pre-prepared snacks and drinks from seemingly nowhere. Despite this, Kanami was thankfull. She downed her drink in only a few seconds, letting out a satisfying sigh as she leaned back on a stone.  
Thank Kami for water...  
Closing her eyes, she takes a few deep breaths to calm herself.  
 _What a day... Wait 'till I tell Uncle Kashi!_  
"So, you three. How was the workout?" Haruka asks, a cheeky grin growing on his face as Iwaizumi jolts up, drink in hand.  
"Horrible! How could you do that to us, Sensei?!" He exclaims in outrage. "I feel betrayed."  
Giggling, Misaki takes a small bite of her snack and covers her mouth with her hand as she chews.  
"I thought it was rather fun. It seemed like you two knew what you were doing." She replies as Haruka lets out a laugh. All eyes turn to Kanami, who opens her own and blinks at them. Why were they looking at her that way?  
Haruka puts his hands on his hips, the wind picking this to be the most opportune time to make him appear like a wize Sensei with his long ponytail blowing in the breeze. "Some seemed to know more than others."  
Gulping, Kanami subconsiously pulls her knees closer to her body.

"I made my Uncle start teaching me when I was very young..." She mumbles, looking away as the grass seemed suddenly much more interesting. "He homeschooled me."  
Iwaizumi leans towards her, his eyes sparkling with interest. Peering up at him, Kanami shrinks away. Though, she did find his eyes rather pretty... "What? Why are you looking at me like that?"  
"What all did your Uncle teach you?" He demands, making Kanami jump at the sudden exclamation. "You were so cool!"  
She pauses, knees still pulled closely to her torso. "R...Really?" She tilts her head in a confused manner and he nods vigorously.  
Misaki peeks over his shoulder at her, her white hair partially blinding Kanami. "Its true! Your Uncle must be very amazing to have taught you everything he has."

Haruka hums, crossing his arms and nodding in agreement. His eyes close as a memory shapes in his mind.

 _There was blood everywhere. As far as he could see. Limbs curled in unnatural ways and intestines lined the streets like police tape. As he stared upon this expanse of genocide, he thought there could be nobody left._  
 _That is, until he saw him. Standing in a puddle of blood and holding a body in his hands. In the faint moonlight, Haruka could see the gravity defying silver hair. He could see the red in the mans left eye. He could see the tears running down his face as he held the body close._  
 _The body, as it would appear, was not a body at all. At least, not a dead one. But that of a little girl crying into her Uncle's shoulder._  
 _Haruka does not see the half-dead woman on a stretcher go past him as he watches the man slowly pick the girl up as if she were a china doll. So fragile and easy to break...  
_  
 _Turning his back to Haruka, he made his way to the rear exit of the compound. The girls arms cling to his neck and as they disappear into the moonlight night, she looks up._  
 _Dark, dull eyes brimming with tears._  
 _That sight would haunt him for the rest of his life.  
_  
"Kakashi is an amazing man. And I, like many others, hold a lot of respect for him." Haruka says, eyes still closed as he wills the tears pricking at his eyes away.  
Not in front of the children. He tells himself.  
Sighing, he finally opens his eyes. "He handled his past in the best way I think he could have, and its shaped him into the man he is today."  
Looking down at his students, he finds them all staring intently at him.  
Misaki leans forward a bit, cradling her drink in her hands. "What all did Mister Hatake do?..." She asks quietly. Haruka waves a hand at her.  
"Now now, thats not for me to tell you. At least, not now. If you really want to Im sure you could hunt him down and ask him."  
Iwaizumi beams. "Really?" He asks. Kanami shoots him a look grumbling a low 'dont ask him'.

Haruka chuckles again.  
"Well, thats all for today. You can head on home for now. But tomorrow morning be here early... say around 5:30? We're going to begin training."  
Rejuvinated and eager to return home, the three students leap to their feet and give their Sensei a quick bow.  
"Yes sir!" They exclaim, before each of them shoots off in their own direction. As Kanami walks home, she feels her face heat up as a smile threatens to work its way to her face.  
 _They thought I was cool!_ Shaking her head, her cold wall reforms once more. _No. I dont want to be 'cool'. I want to be respectable!_  
Who was she kidding... Of course she wanted to be cool!

 **(A/N: I know I know short chapters I'm sorry please don't shoot)**


	11. Downtime

After worming her way through crowds of busy merchants, children and working folk Kanami finally reaches her home. Hurrying inside, she shuts and locks the door behind her. Immediatly she is bombarded by ninja hounds, all of them barking and jumping at her legs. They ask her how everything went and if she was alright only to recieve a cheerful grin in responce. One that reminded them of the time before the massacre... The time when she was truely happy.  
Running through them and onto the couch, she allows them to follow her and nest around her. "What happened?" Pakkun demands again, settling on her lap. Her smile remains, surprisingly, and she shoots him a look remeniscent of a child on Christmas morning.  
"It went wonderfully!" She exclaims, scratching behind both ears. She giggles as his face morphs from one of curiosity to one of tranquility. The other dogs, though happy to see Kanami so at ease for once, cant help but be curious as to what made her this way.

Hearing the sound of approaching footsteps, Kanami glances upward as her Uncle appears in the doorway snacking on some leftover food from who knows how long ago. She blinks.  
"You're home early."  
Looking at her, he shrugs. "I decided to meet them tomorrow morning." He says. "Anyways, how did it go?" He asks. "Who's on your team?"  
Hugging Pakkun close, Kanami shrugs. "I dont know if you'd know the students, but apparently my Sensei is fond of you." Kakashi raises an eyebrow in interest. "His name is Yuto, Haruka."  
Kakashi hums, nodding fondly as he remembers the boy who was nothing but a beginning Chunnin before the Kyuubi attacked the village. After that night he had been promoted from Chuunin to Jounin for taking lead of a sticky situation at the western gate.  
"Yeah, I remember him. Does he still have those goofy taped glasses?"  
"Yeah." Grinning, Kakashi snorts and shakes his head.  
"Anyways, who else? Cmon, I gotta know who my niece is working with." Kakashi walks over and settles himself beside Kanami, pulling one of his many ninken onto his lap.

"Well, theres a girl from the Shiori family... Im not sure how I feel about her yet. Shes very... Oddly calm." Kakashi nods his head, his hand subconsiously stroking the pelt of the ninken in his lap. It wasnt just habitual, but it helped calm him a lot. "Oh! And theres a boy. His name is Hiroto, Iwaizumi. He doesnt belong to a clan or anything but hes super fast! Like," She looks at him with wide eyes and brings her hand up, snapping it a few times in front of them. "fast." Kakashi raises an eyebrow.  
"Is that so?" His lip almost twitches into a smirk. She seemed pretty in awe of this kid.  
No boys in my house.  
Kanami nods franticall. "Uncle Kashi, there were exploding tags and he literally got us out of the way as they exploded." Even that, Kakashi had to agree, was pretty impressive for a Genin. He nods, thinking over what he imagined his neices team was like. He couldnt place why, but he couldnt think of anyone but his own students except with different colored hair and clothes. He sighs. Those kids were already occupying all of his thoughts and hed only just met them. He didnt have the time to focus everything on them...

Humming, he places the dog in his lap to the side as Kanami's stomach lets out a loud growl.  
"Someone's hungry." He notes, standing and stretching.  
"Are you kidding? Im exhausted..." Kanami mutters, laying back onto the back of Bull; the large dog allows her without resistance.  
"I'll make lunch. Rest up."  
Yawning, Kanami cuddles Pakkun close to her and nods as her eyes shut. "Okay..."

 **(A/N: I think this is the SHORTEST chapter I've ever written... blame the Hamilton Soundtrack for giving me fuel and making me think ahead too far.)**


	12. Today is the Day

The next day Kanami woke early so as to meet her team once more. Today they would train for two hours before beginning working on small missions to help people around the village. Kakashi noticed the rapid change in her demeanor as she became slightly more willing to talk to him about her day and she showed visible happiness as she left every morning.  
The only problem? He knew that deep down she was still the same Kanami as she used to be. She still worried if she was good enough- if she was doing something wrong.  
If they hated her.  
He knew that it was important that no such feelings wormed their way into the hearts of her team. If she knew that at least one of the team resented her in any way, she would collapse... just like how she had after the massacre.

One day, as she came home, Kakashi poked his head into her room and watched fondly as she set up a small picture frame on her night table. A picture of her and her team.  
For once she was smiling.

On one misty summer morning, Kanami woke bright and early. As a matter of fact, she barely slept. She'd had to take medicine the doctor perscribed her months ago that she had since failed to use. She didnt want to take medicine for her insomnia- she wanted it to get better on its own. Casting a quick glance at the dark night sky outside, she felt her heart pound as the corners of her mouth warmed her face into a nervous smile.  
 _Today's the day, and I can feel it._  
Throwing her blanket aside, she shivers as her feet touch the cold wooden floor of her room. Quickly she makes her way to her closet and grabs her freshly washed clothes.  
 _Today's the day!_  
Opening her door quietly so as not to disturb Kakashi, who she knew would need his rest, she sneaks down to the kitchen and prepares herself some breakfast. On her way out the door, she grabs her headband and this time ties it to her forehead. Pulling her hair from under it and brushing it behind her ears, she takes a deep breath before opening the door.

Stepping into the street, it was quiet. Not as many people were awake today. However, as she worked through the mist towards her training grounds, she saw him. The boy she passed every morning one way, and every evening the other. The boy who said nothing to her, but gave her a nod as recognition enough.  
The boy with the puppy.  
She remembered him from that day at the Academy, and he had certainly grown since then. He held a stronger air of stubborn pride around him and there was no doubt that as a ninja, he had grown signifigantly. His sharp eyes had grown sharper, like that of a feral beast. But they were soft and warm towards others. They never greeted eachother as they passed, but they saw eachothers headbands. A simple nod was all they needed to understand= and it was nice... mutual.  
Today as she passed him, he nodded to her, his eyes not lifting from the road ahead. She returned it, her pace never faltering. Normally, she did not glance back, but today she felt as if she had to. So, stopping for only a moment, she cast her gaze onto the back of the boy. His jacket hugged nicely around him to protect his skin from the biting mist. For a moment, she wondered who he was- and if they could be friends. She wanted to know more about him.  
And then she cast aside that thought and continued onward.

As she reached the trees, she let took a deep breath. The air was crisp, and smelled of a rainy day. Slowing down ever so slightly, she allowed herself the peace of walking contemplation. If today was to be the day, as she certainly thought it would be, she would need to start everything off calmly.  
Yet it seems that peace was not to last as she heard thundering footsteps approaching behind her. Letting out a sigh of mixed agitation and ease, she continues to walk.  
"Good morning, Iwa-chan."  
She smirks to herself as she hears the boy pick up her pace beside her.  
"How many times do I have to ask before you stop calling me that?" He asks, clear annoyance in his voice.  
"I will never stop. Its a nice nickname!" He scoffs at her.  
"Whatever." He mumbles.  
"You know you like it."

They cast eachother a glance, both of them grinning. By now, though it annoyed Iwaizumi, he appreciated that he meant so much to someone besides his own family. He would never admit it, but he did like his nickname... He liked having such a close friendship with Kanami.  
"Now I've got to think of a nickname for you." She snorts.  
"I dare you to try."  
"Alright Kami-chan."  
"Dont call me that, it sounds like worship." His voice catches in his throat and she lets out a low chuckle. Putting her hands into her pants pockets, she visibly relaxes as they breach the barrier of trees to their rocky training ground. "Have you seen Misaki-san this morning?" She asks him, hopping up the rocks to take a seat. He shakes his head.  
"Not yet, no."  
Hearing the bushes rustle, they look up. Misaki walks calmy from the bushes, her face as relaxed as ever.  
She mumbles. "Im here."  
Iwaizumi grins, hands on his hips. "Now all we need is Haruka-Sensei and the team will be complete!"

Letting out a small humm of contemplation, Kanami rests her hands in her lap. "Hopefully he doesnt develop the same habit as my Uncle. He's always late to everything. He didnt even officially meet with his team until the second day after we had that fight with Haruka-Sensei." Misaki gracefully takes a seat on her own second rock, looking thoughtful.  
"Your Uncle sounds both amazing and lazy." She says, pushing a strand of hair behind her ears.  
Iwaizumi nods matter-of-factly. "I wanna meet him."  
Letting out a snort Kanami shoots him a look. "Well dont count on it..." He blinks, suddenly looking a little downcast.  
He asks. "Aw, why not?"  
Crossing her arms, Kanami tilts her nose into the air. "Cause I dont want you pestering him about every little thing!"  
Misaki leans forward, her brown eyes sparkling curiously. "Has your Uncle gone through quite a lot?"  
Grumbling, Kanami nods her head. "Yes..." She looks off to the side. "Hes... Hes got a lot going on..." Iwaizumi and Misaki tilt their heads, confused. Kanami clears her throat and shakes her head, clearing away the thoughts and memories that had sprung up with that one sentence. "A-Anyways... I think Haruka-Sensei's coming now."  
As if right on cue, her ponytailed instructor exits the trees. He is all smiles this morning.

"Are you all ready?"


	13. Rememberance

Soon the team found themselves in the lower section of the Hokage Tower. It was time for them to recieve a mission for the day... A real mission. Not a D-Rank mission to clear weeds- no. Not anymore. Or at least... Kanami hoped. She hated clearing weeds...  
However Haruka seemed to have a natural affinity for it, and then she remembered he had a garden at home. He probably pulled weeds every few days.  
Anyways, back to the situation at hand...  
No, it seemed today they had been assigned a C-Rank mission.  
 _Fantastic! No pulling weeds today, Sha!_  
She had 10 minutes to meet her team by the gate. Today, she would be guarding a small band of merchants from bandits or wild animals. Simple. Combat wasnt exactly pertained to a C-rank mission and it was highly unlikely that she would run into anything but who knows? Her Uncle had taught her to always be cautious on a mission.  
Speeding home, she grabbed everything she could. Kunai, Shuriken, Exploding tags, Wire... Anything that could ward off attack.  
Glancing at the picture on her desk, one that she had come to protect fondly, her eyes find herself in the midst of her team. Her dark eyes shone in the sunlight and the smallest of smiles grace her face. It was a big change for her to be this happy on a daily basis and she knew; yet the thought only made her more happy. She sees Iwaizumi, with his goofy grin and Haruka and Misaki with their kind and knowing smiles. Her heart pounds.  
Smiling to herself, she bolts out the door.

She didnt notice that she was passing Team 8 in her rush to the gate.  
Blinking, a violet eyed girl follows her passage. Her hands are clasped tightly in her lap, her back straight and her jacket zipped tightly.  
"There she goes again... Didnt we see her a few minutes ago?" She asks quietly. The boy beside her nods, his glasses glinting in the low light of the cafe they sat in. It smelled of tea.  
"Yes but I believe she was heading in the opposite direction." He says just as quietly. He turns to his Sensei, the red eyed woman's gaze sliding from where the girl had dissapeared to her student. "Do you know her, Kurenai-Sensei?"  
Kurenai tilts her head. "Yes. I do."  
At this, the second boy of the group turns to face her. "Well who the heck is she?" He asks, his dog settling comfortably in his lap. "I remember her from the Academy but she only came in for the final exams."  
The violet eyed girl casts him a glance. "I believe she's an Uchiha, Kiba-kun." He shoots her a look. "Hah? But arent they all dead?"

Holding up her hands, Kurenai motions for them to quiet down. The three students fix their attention on her.  
"Hinata is correct. She's an Uchiha- and one of the last few alive at that." Her students look confused. They had been raised thinking the entire clan was massacred. "She was saved the night of the massacre, though her parents didnt survive." They all blink at her. Hinata leans towards the table slightly, her curiosity piqued.  
"Did you know them, Sensei?" She asks lowly.  
As if she hadnt expected the question, Kurenai goes somewhat rigid. Her eyes flash. In them, suddenly, all that her students could see was sadness. Kiba sighs.  
"Now we've gone and done it. She probably doesnt want to think about that!" He says, crossing his arms. He closes his eyes, seemingly in thought. Hinata frowns.  
"I-Im sorry-"  
"I knew her mother well." Hinata looks up and Kiba opens an eye. Kurenai looks forlornly at the table. "She went to the Academy with me. We were good friends..." She sighs, striaghtening and regaining her composure. "I was devastated when I heard."

Suddenly, Shino speaks up. "What was she like?"  
Closing her eyes, Kurenai humms. "She was smart, and goofy... Exceptional in combat thanks to her sister. Ironically, she was an orphan too. Her parents were murdered." The students go rigid.  
"M-Murdered?"  
Kurenai nods, opening her eyes. "They were abusive- horribly so. She used to come into school with bruises on her neck and scrapes on her face. It wasnt pretty... In the end they deserved what came to them."

The memory surfaces vividly in her mind.  
 _The Academy was abuzz that day, students grouped in corners and whispering quietly to each other. Some passed notes while others used Morse code._  
 _She noticed Kiera come in looking very... downcast. She didn't greet her as she normally did and instead took her seat in the front of the class. Frowning, Kurenai turns to another female student beside her and leans close to her ear. "Do you know what's wrong with Kiera?" She asks quietly._  
 _The student jerks away from her, giving her a shocked look. Her eyes gleam._  
 _"You didn't hear?" Kurenai shakes her head and the student beckons her in closer._  
 _"Her parents were murdered last night. The killers still at large apparently." Kurenai freezes, staring wide-eyed at the back of her friend. "They say her sister did it".  
_  
"She held out after the massacre and even survived long enough to get to the hospital. Unfortunatly Med-nin cant reproduce blood-cells... She died of blood loss."  
Hinata's eyebrows furrow.  
"So... That girl is all alone?..." She asks, her head turning back to the entrance. Kurenai shakes her head.  
"She lives with her Uncle now- and shes got an aunt and two cousins out there somewhere." Kiba blinks.  
"Who's her uncle?" he asks. Kurenai smiles, taking the group by surprise.  
"Kakashi Hatake."


	14. C-Rank: Escort the Payload!

Finding that she was the last at the gate, Kanami apologises profusely for the inconvenience. Haruka dismisses it, telling her that she did nothing wrong.  
"This is Takeda and his wife Hiyori." He says, gesture to a man and a woman beside him. The man's hair was light. Lighter than Haruka's. His dark eyes glimmer as he holds out a hand to shake. The man wasnt old, per-say, but the hunch in his back spoke enough for his daily labors.  
"Pleasure to meet you, young lady." He says, flashing a smile. Kanami notes a missing front tooth. She shakes his hand and nods. Next she turns to his wife, a short and stout woman with dark red hair. Her green eyes glimmer excitedly when she sees her.  
"Well look at you! You look absolutely lovely!" She exclaims, grabbing Kanami's hands and shaking them excitedly. "Almost as pretty as your white-haired friend over there!" Kanami pales a bit at the sudden contact and exhuberant attitude but she gives her the best smile she can muster either way.  
Im not sure if that was a compliment or?...  
"T-Thank you very much..." She says quietly, her hands still being shaken. Iwaizumi snickers and Haruka smiles.  
Haruka puts his hands on his hips. "Takeda and Hiyori are traveling with two other pairs of fellow merchants, but they fear the road back to their town may be dangerous. We've been asasigned to escort them to the village." Kanami nods at him as her hands are released. Finally able to move, she turns to her team.

"Do they live in one of the other ninja villages?" She asks. At this Takeda shakes his head, a low humm grumbling up from his throat. "No, no. We live in a small town." Haruka nods, acknowledging their claim. "Which is exactly why we're going to have to be more careful." Iwaizumi tilts his head, clearly confused. Haruka casts him a glance out of the corner of his eyes. "When you're traveling to a smaller village and there is a presumed threat of enemy ninja, the ninja are most likely rogue."  
Misaki perks up. "Rogue ninja?" He nods.  
"Rogue ninja have no village offiliation. They are hired to do any job- which is why they can be shady. The mist has hired some rogue ninja in the past to carry out jobs illegal for normal ninja to follow through with." Kanami frowns.  
 _Sounds an awful lot like..._  
She shakes the thought away. There was no way she was like them. At least... She hoped not.

Hiyori frowns. "We didnt want to cause trouble for anyone, but we felt very in danger..."  
Haruka shakes his head. "No, its our pleasure, dont worry. Its our job to do this sort of thing." He turns back to his students. "The rest of the merchants are a few yards out of the village gate waiting for us." They all nod. Haruka notices the determined glint in his eyes. He claps his hand. "Good! Now, its going to take a few hours- maybe a day if theres a delay; so shall we get going?" With a unanimous 'yes sir' the group heads off.  
As he walks, he keeps an eye on his students. Iwazumi offers to carry Hiyori's satchel for her and Misaki helps Takeda move his small cart of goods. Kanami stands off to Haruka's right, having already offered to help carry two extra bags the couple had brought with them. Seemingly unbothered by the extra weight she makes small talk with the older man, who seems delighted at the fact that he should find her interesting enough to converse with.

After about a half an hour, they meet up with the other merchants. Haruka takes two bags from a dainty woman in sandels and Misaki shoulders another mans satchel. Only one other group carries a cart.  
Along the way, the trip is peaceful and they make good progress. However, Haruka cant help but feel uneasy.  
 _Kakashi left about 4 days ago on a mission and he was supposed to be back in 3... We're heading in around the same direction and I cant help but wonder if they ran into trouble..._  
He sighs heavilly out of his nose, not wanting to distract his students.  
 _No. Dont think like that. Delays happen on missions all the time- its natural. Besides, if Kakashi's with those kids then there should be no problem... Except... If they get their hands on that boy..._  
Eyes locked on the road ahead, he fiddles with his fingers a bit, dancing them around on his thumb. He pushes the thought to the back of his mind. That was the least of his worries. Right now...

Casting a glance over his shoulder, Haruka checks on the group. Two of the merchant women have fallen asleep in the emptier cart and the men all converse amongst themselves, every now and then turning to one of his students for their opinion. As he finishes a sentence, Iwaizumi notices Haruka looking his direction and pokes Misaki. This causes both her and Kanami to turn to him in a confused manner. He points and they all look up. Locking eyes with Haruka, they all wave and shoot him some manner of a smile. He smiles to himself.  
 _Right now I have to keep my own kids in line._


	15. Mothers

Kanami takes a deep breath, breathing in air that lay outside of the ramen shop smell. There was nothing here to permiate it. It was fresh... Crisp.  
She smiles to herself as she looks up, watching a small flock of birds go past. The sky was bright blue now despite the clouds in the distance.  
 _Frisp._  
Sighing quietly, she looks back to the road ahead. Everything was quiet... nice. She stares up at the circular pattern on Haruka's Jonin vest. It reminds her of the first day they met. When she had followed him to the field on that fateful day and she had fought to prove herself.

So content was she that she didnt notice the danger looming ahead of her.

Haruka turns to face the group, a folded map visible in his hand.  
"We're almost there, everyone! If we keep up the pace we wont have to set up camp for the night." The women let out a jubilant yell in response. Hiyori turns over her shoulder to look at the three students.  
"Nobody like sleeping on the ground." She says with a smile. Kanami returns it. She finds the stocky woman heartwarming.  
 _Is this what moms are like?..._  
Her heart pangs at the thought. Sure, she wasnt terribly young when the massacre happened... but the memories faded quickly. In the shock and the grief she tried in vain to cling to the memories.

 _Stumbling into the kitchen, Kanami takes a seat at the table and rubs her eyes. Kakashi frowns a bit. "Did you get enough sleep?" He asks._  
 _Kanami shakes her head and grabs the pre-prepared glass of water that had already been set on the table for her. She takes a heavy gulp. "Are you sure you want to start training today?" He asks. She nods as she sets the cup down, letting out a semi-content sigh. She looks at her hands. Hands so small and delicate clasping something so similar._  
 _In a way, the cup was her body._  
 _Biting her lip, she stares at the dregs of water inside of the ceramic dish._  
 _"Uncle Kashi?..."_  
 _"Yes?" She looks up at him and Kakashi is startled to find fear in her dark eyes. Her grip on the cup tightens making her knuckles turn white._  
 _"Were Papa's eyes green?..." Kakashi stares at her, blinking only once before he shakes his head. He spots a small fracture shoot up the side of the cup. A a bad omen._  
 _"I cant remember..."  
_  
She jolts out of her memory as she snags her foot on a rock. Stumbling, she almost crashes into Haruka who stops her just in time. He looks down at her.  
"You okay?" He asks. She looks up at him and nods, shaking her head a bit to clear everything away.  
"Yeah just... thinking..."  
Nodding to each other, they turn back to the road.  
They stop. The moving of the carts halts, the wood creaking angrily at the sudden lack of motion. Conversations go silent and the only thing they could hear were the sounds of birds in the distance. However, even the thrush would not sing its lovely song for them.  
The birds they heard were crows.

Ahead of them stood a woman. Her brown hair was short and kept out of the way with a bandana over her head; yet a few wispy locks still fell in her face. Her eyes, though dull, shone in the sky as a vibrant green. Her cheeks were sunken and littered with freckles, moles and shadows. Her attire was what Kanami would call a 'woke up late outfit' consisting of a jumble of different clothes stitched together in places where repairs were needed.  
In her hand is a yari. The blade glints in the fading light as the clouds roll in overhead.  
Kanami stares at her. She surely wasn't stupid enough to do this alone...  
 _I'm not good enough a ninja to sense Chakara yet... I'll have to rely on Haruka-Sensei for that._  
Holding the spear at length, the girl shifts some of her weight to it.

"Hand over the merchandise."


	16. The Enemy Arrives

_Those eyes..._  
Why were they so familiar?  
Beside her, Haruka puts a firm hand on her shoulder and pushes her a step back.  
He turns his head a bit for them to hear. His words are quiet and swift.  
"Manji."  
In a flash Misaki darts to the right of her cart, turning so that she faced both the forest and the woman head. She holds her hand in front of her.  
Iwaizumi jumps to the back of the group, back to everyone with a kunai out. Kanami darts to the left, whipping out two handfuls of shuriken. She holds them up, poised and ready to throw. She casts another glance at the woman. She stares at her eyes as she raises an eyebrow.  
 _Why?...  
_  
Scoffing, the girl lifts her yari and twirls it a bit.  
"Oh? Not gonna hand it over?" She asks, tilting her head. "Thats too bad. I was hoping I wouldnt have to kill anyone this time.  
Several whimpers arize from the group of merchants and they group together. Kanami spies Hiyori grabbing her husbands hand and holding it tight. Snapping her gaze back to the woman, she watches as she twirl the spear back to its original position. Raising it hight into the air, she hits it into the ground three times.  
From the trees emerge more ninja.  
 _Its a damn shame Im not a sensory type..._  
Standing around their presumed leader, she snaps her fingers and a man steps up. She thrusts the yari into his arms. "Trade me."  
Fumbling with the clasp, he hands her an oversized Tsurugi from his sheath. The double-edged sword shines defiantly against the dark clouds overhead.  
She points to the group.

"Kill the insulent guards first. Then we'll handle the merchants and their products." They snicker, shooting the group of merchants dark looks. They crowd together, gasping quietly.  
Haruka growls, whipping out a kunai.  
"You three! Listen up!"  
Jolting from her stupor, Kanami's gaze leaves the woman and turns to her sensei. "Im not capable of covering you all as well as the merchants- but their lives are our top priority! Just remember your training and you'll be okay!"  
Kanami goes rigid and she hears Iwaizumi gulp behind her.  
 _But... We're not good enough yet!_ She feels a lump rise in her throat. She wanted to vomit. Sure, she knew what she was doing but... It was the execution that mattered.  
 _I'm going to die... Because of her..._

Glancing back at the woman, a small gasp almost escapes her as she finds her staring right back. The green eyes glint maliciously. She holds up a hand as her men step forward.  
"Hold on." She say. Nonchalantly, she walks past Haruka who whips around. Fear runs through him when he sees who shes walking towards.  
But if he moved, the merchants were dead.  
Kanami swallows the lump in her throat as the woman approaches. Her tsurugi drags across the earth, creating a heavy score mark. She stops in front of her and Kanami cant seem to find the will to throw the shuriken in her hands. "Tell me. Whaddya lookin at?" She asks, tilting her head. Kanami gulps, eyebrows stitching togther. "Huh?" The woman presses on. Kanami says nothing. "I SAID: **WHADDAYA LOOKIN AT**!" Kanami flinches at her tone. Growling, the woman snorts. "Hmph. What happened to that enthusiasm I saw earlier, huh? That willingness to protect"?"  
Holding her hand back up to her men, she gestures for them to move forward.

"Grab the kids."

Darting forward, Haruka goes to stop them but to no avail. There were too many men for him to keep track of. He hears a shriek as one of them grabs Misaki, who struggles against the firm grip of two women. Iwaizumi shouts in desperation as he is dragged roughly over to where Haruka is. Stopping beside him, all thee are held in vice like grips.  
"Move and youre dead." One of them says. Haruka jaw clenches shut tightly.  
Kanami cowers as the woman looms over her.

"Lets show this little one what happens when you mess with me."


	17. Auntie

Kanami's knees quake as the woman raises a leg. Sending a sharp kick to Kanami's gut, the woman sends her flying. Her shuriken drop to the ground with a clatter as she rolls across the earth. Her hair fans out around her as she stops on her back. She blinks at the clouds, her eyes not seeing her. Spit drips from her mouth. _What am I doing..._ Rolling over, she lifts herself onto her knees. She glances up only to be kicked again in the jaw. She lets out a yelp and sprawls onto her back."Come on. Fight like you mean it!" The woman hisses. She slams her foot into Kanami's stomach and she feels a metallic taste in her throat as red splatters her chin. She knows her team is calling to her but she cannot hear. Her ears are ringing. _Whats wrong with me... Why wont I fight?..._ "Get up dammit!" She sees the foot connect to her stomach, twist into her intestines. But she does not feel it. She knows she is coughing up blood, but she doesnt feel it. "You're such a dissapointment! I thought you'd be more fun!" Hissing, Kanami flies through the air again. The landing took all of the air out of her lungs. With a wheeze, she holds onto her stomach and slowly rises. Thunder rings out in the air. Her long hair was matted and covered in dirt. Her clothes were messy and small scratches litter her exposed skin. She shoots the woman a glare, only to recieve a grin in return. Clapping fills the air. "There we go! Thats what I like to see! Now, pull out a weapon. Anything. Come at me." _What is it about her thats making me hesitate?_ Kanami lowers the arm cradling her stomach and grabs two kunai from her tool pouch. _I trained for this moment._ "Yes! Now! Come." The woman shifts her stance, bracing the sword to defend.Kanami can hear thunder as she takes a deep breath. She hardens herself, closing off any reservation. It was fight or die. She casts a quick glance on her team, eyebrows furrowed. Another bout of thunder and a dull flash from the sky.They were all in danger. If she failed them now... she would never forgive herself.Bracing the kunai, she clenches her jaw.She charges forward."Yes yes! Much more like it!"In a flurry of blades, she is pushed back. Kanami presses into her, forcing her further and further backwards. When the blade of the sword comes down, she rolls to the side and jumps back. Hands flurry into hand signs."Katon: Housenka!"The burning sensation begins in her stomach, forming into collective spots of raging fire. She expells them quickly, the light flaring up from her mouth before shooting at her enemy.

The woman dodges deftly, her experience guiding her through the battle. Her eyes glint maliciously as she darts around them, making her way towards Kanami. Growling, Kanami whips out more shuriken. Throwing them, she watches in satisfaction as the wire attatched wraps around the womans form; but her satisfaction turns into annoyance as her sword easilly snaps the wire and sends the shuriken flying in all directions. One even hits her own man in the neck. She doesnt seem to care, but Misaki lets out a terrified shriek. The merchants cover their eyes.Kanami doesnt look that way either.

Growling she throws her two kunai from earlier, only for the tsuguri to deflect them."You're trying so hard, arent you?" The woman asks, kicking out at Kanami before dodging a punch and shooting back. Her hand forms a halberg over her mouth and Kanami frowns.One handed seal?..."Its a darn shame you couldnt show me more of your talent."Launching forward, Kanami gasps as the woman rises over her, the sword in hand. Lightning flashes in the sky, lighting up those vibrant green eyes.

She screams.

 _Kanami remembers the night her mother died. She remembers it vividly. She fell asleep beside her mother in her hospital bed, and then she awoke at her Uncles house._ _Her aunt was beside here, Kakashi being upstairs to put the children to bed. Kanami blinks and rubs her eyes. "Aunt Kirai? What are we doing back home? I want to go see Mama..." She mumbles, looking up to meet her mothers gaze._ _She didnt notice it until later, but her aunts shoulders were shaking. She was biting her lip to hold off the tears._ _"You cant go see your mom, Kanami..." She says quietly, her voice cracking a bit._ _"Why not?"_ _Sniffing, Kirai looks at her niece. God, how she looked like her father... it almost upset her how little her mother came out in her. She had his ear, his eyebrows, his face shape. Heck... She even had his shoulders._ _Kanami was shocked herself to find that her aunts beautiful dark eyes, so much like her own, had changed. Or at least, one of them had. One of them was a bright and vibrant green, its pupil contracting and expanding every few moments in a slow and pacing manner. Kirai takes in a shakey breath, unable to look her in the eyes._ _"How to say to you..." She murmurs quietly. Her gaze locks onto her feet in front of her. "A few hours ago, your mother..." She takes another shaky breath. How would she help her niece understand that her mother was gone? "She died-" Kirai's voice breaks, failing her, and her hand shoots her hand to her mouth. Tears flow down her face and she bends her head over her legs, curling into herself and trying in vain to hold back the sobs. "Sh-Shes gone..."_ _Throwing her head back, she sniffs and looks again to her niece. Kanami stares at her, unblinkingly._ _Her second eye is green in the middle._

Pain.Lightning.Rain.And the memory an aunt long lost.A blade to the shoulder. "Spinning, the blade connects to her stomach. Thankfully it was too dull to cut through completely. Either that or she was a little too fatty in the sides. She falls to the ground and gasps for breath, clutching at her chest. The pain was unbearable. She felt as if she were leaking. She felt her energy draining. The blade raises above her and her eyes widen. The woman glares down at her.


	18. Rest

Eyes widening, Kanami suddenly jerks to the left. Adrenaline fills her very being and her vision blurs slightly as the blade roughly cuts the space between her shoulderblades. It was a near miss. Rolling aside, she lets out a grunt and kicks at the back of the womans leg.  
Careening over, the woman wheezes as her back hits the ground. Kanami staggers up. Taking the opportunity given to her, she grasps the handle of the Tsuguri and yanks it out of her grip. The woman sits up as Kanami holds it down to her throat. The sharpened point glints in the dull light of the storm. She breathes heavilly, her hands struggling to keep their grip on the sword. She was bleeding, and badly... she had to end this quick.  
Gritting her teeth, she makes a face. The woman smirks.  
"Very good!... You know, I can see why the boss doesnt want any of you brats getting close to the village." Kanami frowns.  
"What?"  
Before she can answe the woman dissapears. Kanami jolts, eyes widening in fear. She whips around and drops the Tsuguri, no longer able to hold it.  
The woman had substituted herself.

Her hands latch around her throat and she gasps, clawing at her hands.  
"You damn kids just cause too much trouble!" Kanami's vision blurrs as black crowds her peripheral. She can hear the pulsating of her blood rushing in her head.  
She hears grunts off to the left; yet to her they all sound displaced and muddled. The woman, now a blurr of brown and tan, get flung to the side and Kanami is released. She gasps, her hands shooting up to her throat. The sharp sting of air filling her lungs makes her eyes water and she grimaces. She could hear people fighting, could hear screaming and yelling. She was vaguely aware of thundering footsteps and the sounds of wagons. She curls in on herself, one of her hands moving to her injued torso. Shaking, she lifts the hand to her eyes and watches as her blood becomes opaque in the rain and washes off into the mud.  
Gasping for breath, she blacks out.

When she awakens she no longer hears the pitter patter of rain.  
Her eyes squint open and she groans. Her body aches, and her shoulders and stomach pulse with a low and throbbing pain. Turning her head, she wonders where exactly she is.  
She spots several tents set up to her right and to her left. She blanks. The last she checked she was bleeding out after her first 'fight'...  
She hears something shift beside her and Misaki peers down at her. Her brown eyes blink and sparkle.  
"Misaki?..." Her team mates face relaxes.  
"You're awake... thank god. You really had us worried..." Frowning, Kanami tries to sit up. She grimaces as pain rockets down her body. Misaki places a gentle but frantic hand on her collar bone. "Dont! You need to rest... We've set up camp for the night..." Kanami then notices the sky darkening through the trees above her. She recognizes the faint crackle of a fire nearby.  
Hearing the commotion, several others walk over as Kanami ignores Misaki and sits up anyway. The others crouch down beside her, either criss-cross or crouching on their knees. Iwaizumi and Harkua look at her with clear worry in their eyes. Hiyori kneesl down beside them.  
"Its good to see you up, Kanami." Haruka murmurs, "You took quite a beating there."  
Iwaizumi bites his lip.  
"Im sorry Kanami-san... we should have tried to help you..." Kanami blinks and shakes her head.

"Its okay. I understand." Hiyori frowns and wrings her hands together.  
"We were all very scared..." Kanami looks down at her clothes, the spare pare she had packed in her bag for just in case. A simple t-shirt she had stolen from Kakashi and a pair of her own pants. Her own clothes must have been destroyed after the fight.  
"What happened after I blacked out?" She asks. Haruka sighs deeply.  
"We tried to fight them but we couldnt hold out for long so we ran. We think we lost them... for now... we're going to camp for the night since its getting dark."  
While Haruka explained this Iwaizumi's face had slowly warped from one of concern to one of confusion. He looks up at the Jonin.  
"That woman said something about a 'boss'..." Haruka nods and turns to him.  
"Most likely she and her gang were hired by someone wealthy. They must be from the nearby town as well..." He frowns. "Anyways," he turns back to Kanami, "get some rest. We're moving at dawn..." He gives Misaki and Iwaizumi a look signaling that it was time for them to leave their injured friend alone and they quietly stand up to go. Hiyori follows, looking fretful.  
She fans her face as if she were nervous. "I sure hope that Gato doesnt plan on disrupting our town..."  
Sighing, Kanami lays back and watches the sky continue to darken.  
 _Gato, huh?_


End file.
